Category: Picture of the Week

Portrait of Elizabeth I in “The Arte of English Poesie”. Photo April 2016

I needed a picture of the birthday girl Elizabeth I and it looks like I don’t have any more in my 2015 trip photos, so I pulled this from my photos of Shakespeare in Print & Performance from 2016. This exhibit was put on by the Harry Ransom Center at my university to mark 400 years since Shakespeare’s death.

The Arte of English Poesie was printed in London by Richard Field in 1589 and was dedicated to Elizabeth I. The Latin caption translates as: “For the one who is ever the same, and no other.”

Royal arms and the motto of Richard III on his tomb in Leicester Cathedral. Photo May 2015.

Half groat of Henry VII at the Bosworth Battlefield visitor center. Photo May 2015.

The photo itself might not be great (sorry… displays like these can be difficult to photograph) the object is really interesting and a good example of some of the challenges in archaeology.

The Ashby de la Zouch Canal alongside the Bosworth Battlefield trail. Photo May 2015

With the lack of exercise thanks to the pandemic and the record-hot temps here in Central Texas (107F – almost 42C) I’ve been daydreaming of walking trails in the UK. I know they had their stretch of record heat recently too but even those temps would be a relief for me right now!

Vaulting in Norwich Cathedral. Photo May 2015.

Entrance to Kenilworth Castle. Photo May 2015.

Part of the ruins of the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds. Photo May 2015.

Last week was the anniversary of Mary Tudor Brandon’s burial at the Abbey, so I thought I would use another picture of the ruins. From the shape of this section, I’m guessing it was the apse of the abbey church. I’m not 100% where in the ruins Mary’s original burial would have been, but her body was moved just a few years later to the church of St. Mary’s when the abbey was dissolved.

Replica of a dress of Mary I at Framlingham Castle. Photo May 2015.

Garden center at Castle Acre Priory, Norfolk. Photo May 2015.

I loved this little space next to the information center at Castle Acre Priory which is evocative of a medieval walled garden. If I had a house with a yard I would totally do something like this!

Part of the kitchen area at Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, Shottery, near Stratford-upon-Avon. Photo May 2015.

I think this choice of picture is emblematic of the fact that I’ve been following a lot of cottagecore Tumblrs lately.

Portrait of Henry VIII at Hampton Court Palace. Photo May 2015.

Had to use an image of the birthday boy today!

In the keep of Rochester Castle. Photo May 2015.

The Quadrangle in the Upper Ward of Windsor Castle. Photo May 2015.

Close-up of Henry VIII from The Field of Cloth of Gold at Hampton Court Palace. Photo May 2015.

I already used the full painting back in Picture of the Week #447 on the 497th anniversary, so here’s a zoom in on Henry for the 500th anniversary!

Portrait of Anne Boleyn at Hampton Court Palace. Photo May 2015.

This portrait came up in a discussion on Twitter this morning, so I thought I would use it today. And tomorrow is the anniversary of Anne’s coronation too! (I would have used a portrait of today’s birthday girl, Margaret Beaufort, but the only photo I have of her portrait at the Palace has a lot of window glare on it. Oh well!).

Heading towards Henry VIII’s Kitchens at Hampton Court Palace. Photo May 2015.

I was at Hampton Court this day in 2015 and it’s hard to believe it has already been 5 years since my last trip to the UK. In 1998 this was the day I flew back to Texas, in 2000 I was in Wales and visited Chirk Castle and Valles Crucis Abbey, and in 2003 I went to Greenwich and saw the Elizabeth I exhibition. Lots of good memories!

Courtyard of Oxburgh Hall. Photo May 2015.

All of my trips to the UK have been in the second half of May because that’s one of the easiest times for me to take two or three weeks off work, I thought it would be fun to see where I was on this date during those trips!

1998 – Hatfield House and Old Palace and Windsor Castle
2000 – Travel day from London to Bangor, Wales and resting up
2003 – Canterbury Cathedral and Dover Castle
2015 – Blickling Hall and Blakeney and the Norfolk Coastal Path

Here’s hoping there won’t be another 12 year gap before I’m able to get back!

Palmer’s Farmhouse at Mary Arden’s Farm, Wilmcote, near Stratford-upon-Avon. Photo May 2015.

Today is Mothers Day here in the US so here’s a photo of a place associated with Shakespeare’s mother, Mary Arden, although it turns out that the building next door to the one above is actually the one the Ardens owned. The whole property is still called “Mary Arden’s Farm” though and is definitely worth a visit when things open back up!

Blakeney, Norfolk, England. Photo May 2015.

Not strictly Tudor related, but as I’ve mentioned before, Blakeney was a big seaport from medieval times through to the 20th century, so it would have been a hoppin’ place in the Tudor era! Now it’s a nice seaside village to spend a lazy Sunday in. 🙂

Shakespeare’s Birthplace, Stratford-upon-Avon. Photo May 2015.